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Rumble sighed, trying to shake the creeping feeling of regret as he got his stuff together. He glanced over at his sleeping sibling, and after a few moments of silence guilt overtook him and he tossed his makeshift travel bag to the ground, opting to wake up said sibling. Savage was laying on the ground, a blanket under them and another one covering them.
There was a pillow that they had their head on, Rumble had stolen it when they had left Flower Fruit Mountain. They looked so sweet and serene, he couldn’t just leave his little sibling..
He kneeled on the ground, gently poking and shaking them awake, and perking up when they awoke with a groan.
Savage yawned, sitting up and rubbing their eyes before stretching a bit.
They sleepily looked over at Rumble, chirping softly in place of a good morning and smiling drowsily when Rumble returned the chirp.
They giggled and got up while Rumble took the pillows and blankets, dusting them off before putting them in the makeshift travel bag from before.
Putting it on his back, he held his brother's hand and immediately began to walk.
“You seem in a hurry,”
Savage commented, glancing around for anything they could eat. Rumble nodded in response and made a little noise, before taking a few moments to respond. That was fine, Rumble was always the more cautious/quiet one.
“...Looking for food, peaches if we get lucky n’ stuff. I gotta talk to you after breakfast, ‘s important.”
Savage frowned hearing that, and they tried to think of anything that they’d done wrong recently. Rumble didn’t usually bring up important things unless they were truly important, he usually tried to fix it himself. Savage couldn’t think of anything they did wrong recently, sure they may have stolen some fruit off of trees, and beat up a couple of demons, but that was all warranted! They needed food to survive, especially in the forest, and beating up the demons was in self-defense! Even when Rumble continued to fight them until they died, still technically in self defense! Rumble seemed to notice Savage's discomfort.
“Not in trouble,” he assured. “Promise.”
They managed to find a few peaches, that was good! Finding actual, ripe peaches was rare in the couple of weeks they’ve been living by themselves lately. Rumble took special care in getting the peaches and washing them off in any nearby river, while Savage set up a little spot for the two to eat and talk peacefully. That’s how their schedule usually went on a good day. Wake up, pack up, find food and eat it together, take a bath if they could find any streams, and afterwards just go with the flow of the day.
“So,” Savage started, chirping in satisfaction as they bit into the peach. “What’s up..?”
Again, Rumble took a few moments to respond. At this point, Savage could tell the different ways as to why he took a bit to respond. Rumble had been nonverbal for the first few hundred years of his life, and he didn’t learn words as quickly as Savage though he tried to act like he did. He couldn’t just think of what to say on a whim unless he was playing or acting, and he often needed a little extra time to think of what to say or how to say it. This time, it seemed to be him choosing and piecing together his words.
“..I know where dad is. I wanna save him, we can both save him all by ourselves and prove that we’re strong, like big kids.”
Savage nearly choked on their peach, jaw dropping as their eyes went wide. The entire reason that they were needing to take care of themselves in the forest, that problem could be solved! They could find dad, bring him back safe, and they could all go back and be a happy family again! Maybe, if Savage was lucky, Rumble would even explain why he ran away from papa when he came back to Flower Fruit Mountain! Rumble continued to speak.
“But, he’s in hell. The place down there,” he gently stomped the ground. “Where you go when you die, and it’s all fiery and dark.”
At that, Savage cocked their head and pouted, quickly finishing up the peach. Hell? Why would dad be in hell?
“Just..Just saying,” Rumble hesitated for a moment, trying to find the words. Savage noticed this and poked at the peach in Rumbles hands and Rumble, getting the hint, took a bite.
“Mm! Just saying..Yeah, that. Just saying, I didn’t wanna bring you,”
Savage frowned, opening their mouth before being promptly shushed by Rumble shoving another peach in their mouth.
“Not cuz I think you’re not strong, but cuz you’re my brother and I don’t want you to get hurt. Buuuttttt, I thought that you being with me down there would be better than you being up here all by yourself.”
Savage perked up a little at this new piece of information, humming and munching on the new peach.
“I wanted to know what you want. Do you wanna come with me, or not. If you wanna come with me, we can both go down to hell and save dad. If you don’t..i’m not gon’be mad. I-i can bring you back to Water Curtain Cave, and you can go back to Flower Fruit Mountain and stay with...Wukong..while I go.”
Savage thought for a moment, weighing the two options in their head. On one hand, they’d be able to go back to papa and be safe. Honestly, they’d begun to wonder why Rumble had stopped calling Wukong ‘papa’. Oh, well, that could probably be answered later. On the other hand, however, as much as they’d like to go back to Flower Fruit Mountain, they didn’t want to leave Rumble alone. Savage finished up the fruit and wiped their mouth, hopping to their feet and clapping once to show they made a decision. Rumbles' ears pricked up and he quickly scarfed down the rest of his peach, looking up and giving his full attention to his younger twin.
“..I’m gonna go with you!! You’re not gonna be alone down there in that scary place, nu-uh, I’ll help you! We’ll be together like always, and we’ll both save dad and prove we’re as strong and brave as dad and papa!!”
Rumble blinked, surprised for a moment. A grin then spread on his face, and he got to his feet as well. He made a noise, a chirp of happiness, and hugged Savage tight. Savage hugged back, and an unspoken agreement was formed:No matter what, they’d protect each other. They’d go anywhere with each other, and make sure they don’t get too badly hurt, because that’s what siblings would do.
“Really!!?”
“Yeah-! C’mon, we can take a bath in the river, and then get ready!! Do you know how to even get to hell, though?? Isn’t it all scary, I don’t think we could just knock on the ground and ask politely.”
Rumble blinked.
“..I didn’t think of that. Well, uhh..what’s that lady that they’d always mention in the bedtime stories..”
“The one that would help papa?” Savage perked up a little, snapping their fingers. “Oh, oh! You mean Goddess of Mercy, Guan Yin!!”
Rumble nodded, and Savage sat back down. They both got into the lotus position, closing their eyes and beginning to pray to the goddess of mercy.
Surprisingly, She actually appeared before the two children, making her presence known as the two opened their eyes. Rumbles' jaw dropped, and Savage bowed in respect. After a light look from Savage, Rumble bowed as well.
Guan Yin looked to Savage, then Rumble. She then took in their surroundings, truthfully a bit confused. Why would two random children need her for something? Two random children, no less, that seemed to have an astounding amount of power surrounding their auras.
“Children,” she greeted. “Why have you summoned me to the forest, where are your parents?”
Savage smiled nervously, intimidated by the goddess’ presence.
“Our dad is in hell, we both just gotta prove that we’re strong and brave. We wanna go down to hell, and save him!”
Guan Yin frowned, sighing softly.
“Oh, young ones..Who are your parents, tell me their names.”
“The Six-Eared Macaque, and the Great Sage Equal to Heaven Sun Wukong.”
Rumble spoke this time, Guan Yin softly gasping at the revelation.
“Or, if that’s too confusing,” Savage chimed in. “The Monkey King!”
Guan Yin nodded, thinking for a few moments. So that’s why the children looked so familiar, that’s why their power level was so great and auras so strong. They were indeed the children of Sun Wukong and the Six-Eared Macaque. She sighed quietly, looking at the twins’ hopeful faces and thinking for a few moments.
“Your father Sun Wukong is quite the character. He caused quite the uproar in heaven many years ago, and had to be trapped under a mountain for 500 years afterwards as punishment. However, since then I'd like to think that he’s developed in maturity. Because of this, children, I’ll help you. When you are in times of need, say the word and I will help you.”
Savage grinned, bowing and profusely thanking the goddess for her kindness and generosity. Rumble, however, cocked his head in confusion.
“What words do we say?”
Guan Yin simply replied, “You’ll know when the time is right,” before vanishing before their very eyes.
All was silent for a few moments, the twins taking in what had just occurred, before the ground began to shake. Their eyes widened and they just barely had the chance to grab each other before the ground split open in two. They fell through the split in the ground, clinging to each other and yelling out in alarm as they fell lower and lower and the temperature rose higher and higher. The two just barely managed to land on their feet with an ‘oomph,’ Savage slightly stumbling backwards before being steadied by Rumble.
The twins looked around, keeping a tight grip on each other's hands. They looked to be in a subterranean-looking maze, maybe a labyrinth? There were chambers and different levels of torture, the air humid and echoing with screams.
Savage flinched at the noise, sticking close to Rumble and immediately making small noises of distress. Demons became alerted at the noises, looking over at the two children. Strange, the demons thought, why were two children in hell? Despite their strange appearance, it was clear that the two were demon-children that were in hell, and that said demon children were very much alive. It seemed that they were sort’ve at the ‘entrance’ of hell, newly dead or lost souls appearing and being taken by a man with the head of an Ox, and another man with the face of a horse.
Rumble frowned, freaked out and looking to the two men. He gently tugged on Savage’s hand, thinking for a few moments. They weren’t lost souls, they weren’t dead, so what would happen to them down here? Would the Ox-Headed and Horse-Faced men hurt them? How were they supposed to find their dad in such a large place?
Savage softly sighed, lightly tapping Rumble a few times to get his attention.
“Do we ask those men for help? They look kinda scary, but I don’t think we can do anything else.”
Hesitantly, Rumble nodded.
The two came over to Ox-Head and Horse-Face, who looked down at the two in confusion. A lot of people were giving them confused looks today, it seemed. Rumble glared, but his face softened when Savage gently squeezed his hand to calm him.
“Hello..We’re looking for our dad, do you think you can help? He’s down here, and we need to get him back.”
Ox-Head laughed, Horse-Face quickly joining in.
“Foolish little children! Once someone is dead, if they’ve sinned, they don’t return. They’re tortured based on how they’ve sinned, and-”
Ox-Head was cut off by Rumble jump front kicking him in the face. Owch. Savage’s eyes widened and they wondered where Rumble had even learned that before remembering the play fights that their parents would have. It would always get a bit out of hand, but Rumble must’ve taken note of the movements that they had done. Savage blinked before bursting out into laughter and joining in.
Ox-Head and Horse-Face were both incredibly strong, however, they couldn’t triumph over the two. With Wukong’s inherited strength and Macaque’s semi-inherited skill, though reckless and untrained, the twins were able to defeat them with semi-relative ease. Due to this, Ox-Head and Horse-Face were both infuriated, embarrassed that they’d gotten provoked (and beaten) by two children.
“Who..who are you?!” Ox-Head demanded, Horse-Face chiming in. “Where are your parents!? S-surely, they wouldn’t approve of this..!”
Rumble scoffed, gingerly wiping some blood off of his siblings face. Savage was the one to speak, gleeful at the two’s victory.
“We’re the children of Sun Wukong, Great Sage Equal to Heaven, and the Six-Eared Macaque!!”
Ox-Head and Horse-Face gasped, their mouths agape in surprise. The Great Sage Equal to Heaven himself, as well as the revered one who fought by The Great Sage’s side?
Though it hurt their pride, the two guardians rose and kneeled, begging the two children for forgiveness. They were immortal, yes, so there was no way that the two children could kill them. However, as previously established, their parents were Sun Wukong and The Six-Eared Macaque. They could’ve inherited immortality, it seemed kind of impossible but due to the kid’s current power level, it also didn’t seem too far fetched.
Rumble grinned at that, Savage flapping his hands a little before clearing their throat in an attempt to look dignified.
“Take us to our dad. And if you don’t know where he is, then uh, take us to..”
Savage thought for a few moments, before quietly gasping at Rumble’s sudden chime-in.
“Then take us to King Yama himself!!”
Ox-Head and Horse-Face blinked, before getting up.
“That’s our job,” Ox-Head snapped angrily, Horse-Face nodding in agreement. They had fought (and lost) for nothing, when they could’ve just taken the twins there with no conflict? Savage sighed at that, Rumble processing that for a moment before rubbing his neck in embarrassment.
“..guess that all worked out?”
Ox-Head and Horse-Face simultaneously groaned, while Savage smiled sheepishly and held Rumble’s hand. The two twins were then led off to see King Yama.
The walk was surprisingly long, and Savage had ended up getting tired halfway. Rumble perked up and made a noise of relief once they got there, as he had offered to carry Savage the rest of the way once they had gotten tired.
“Sav,” Rumble said quietly, moving his arms a bit to wake up his brother. “Savage, we’re here.”
Savage softly groaned, rubbing their eyes and stretching a bit once Rumble put them down. They smiled a little, looking around before remembering where they were and what they were doing.
King Yama looked down on the two children, as if staring into their very souls. Judging them.
Ox-Head and Horse-Face bowed upon seeing them, Savage noticing and doing the same. They lightly whacked Rumble’s leg, and Rumble made a noise of annoyance and slight-defiance before following suit and bowing.
“Children,” King Yama began, his voice deep and booming. “What are you doing here? You both are alive, it’s easy to notice. How did you manage to get here without losing your lives?”
Rumble said nothing, Savage looking to him. They were about to speak, before recognizing Rumble’s expression. He was trying to formulate his words, and so Savage stayed quiet.
“..Dad,” Rumble finally got out, King Yama raising an eyebrow as Savage expanded off of that.
“Our dad is down here. We’ve come to get him, we gotta get him back so he can take care of us again. He didn’t do anything wrong!”
“Your parents are..?”
“Sun Wukong,” Ox-Head said. “They are the children of The Great Sage.”
“And the Six-Eared Macaque,” Horse-Face added.
King Yama frowned, thinking for a few moments. While Macaque didn’t commit many wrong doings, however, Sun Wukong was infamous for being a menace. One thing they both had, however, was immense power. That, and a bit of a habit of being impulsive with said power. The point being, the two children probably had both the power, and the impulsive nature of their parents. Not a good combination when mixed together.
“I see. The Six-Eared Macaque hasn’t committed many wrongdoings. However, death cannot be undone.”
Savage's jaw dropped, and Rumble immediately got hostile. His eye twitched, and he glared.
“Wha-But that’s not fair.”
“Death is inevitable, child, it doesn’t matter whether it’s fair or not.”
“But it’s not fair!” Rumble repeated. “Give us our dad, he deserves to be set free!! Give it, give it, give him back!!”
Savage began to protest with Rumble, and soon enough both children were screaming and throwing a tantrum.
King Yama frowned, quickly getting fed up. He had expected the tantrum, they were children after all. However, he didn’t expect them to run off. King Yama’s eyes widened a little and he ordered Ox-Head and Horse-Face to go after the two, who had now started to scream for their dad.
“DAD!!! DAD, WHERE ARE YOU!!!”
“You two-!! Get back here!”
Rumble grabbed Savage's arm, jumping up and landing on a newly formed Flying Nimbus Cloud. Savage's eyes widened, before they grinned and cheered.
“Woaahhh!! Rumble, that’s so cool!! How’d you do that!?”
“I..i'unno!”
Rumble shrugged, grinning at his brother as they flew off on the cloud. Maybe it was a spur of the moment thing? Their laughter echoed as they flew off, and they were quickly able to lose the two pursuers.
Ox-Head twitched, and Horse-Face groaned in annoyance, the two’s shoulders slumping as they made their way to tell King Yama.
Rumble and Savage flew around the 18 levels of hell, uncomfortable and a bit scared at what they witnessed. However, they ignored it and continued to look around, calling out for their dad as they avoided the sinners' assorted cries for help.
🪷
Macaque’s eyes widened as he heard the cries, he perked up in confusion and immediately turned to the source. From behind him, the whispers in the strange, chained box ceased for a moment. Soon afterwards, the whispering got louder, sounding more urgent and desperate.
“Wha..”
“DADDDD!!!” Rumble’s unmistakable voice, loud and aggressive, yet a little horse from how little he spoke.
“WHERE ARE YOU!?” Savage’s voice came next, less horse and more ‘sweet’ sounding. However, theirs was also loud and urgent.
Macaque winced at the noise, shuddering a bit. Conflicting feelings of relief and concern flooded his system, and he yelled back to them.
“RUMBLE, SAVAGE!!”
What were his kids doing here? Were they here to save him? How did they even get here, what if they got hurt!?
Rumble and Savage soon managed to find his location, hopping off their Nimbus Cloud and running over to tackle-hug Macaque. Rumble smiled and Savage squealed, Macaque laughing softly in disbelief.
“You learned how to use your Nimbus Cloud, huh, Rumble?” he asked, to which Rumble enthusiastically nodded. “What are you two doing here, you’re not hurt are you?” his expression switched from proud to concerned as he checked the two, examining them closely for any possible injuries. Seeing they were fine aside from a few scrapes and bruises, he relaxed a bit.
“Nope!” Savage exclaimed. “Me n’ Rumble came down to save you!”
“Okay, kid, let me rephrase that. How did you get here?”
“Guan Yin!”
Macaque blinked, faltering for a moment. He was stunned and it showed in his expression. The kids met the immortal goddess of mercy?? He was about to say something when Rumble blinked, looking to the box from before.
“..Wha’s that?” he asked curiously, going to touch it. “..’S whispering.”
Before Rumble could touch it, he suddenly faltered, cringing a little as he heard three angry sounding voices.
“We found you!” Ox-Head snapped at the two, grinning in victory though he was clearly livid.
“Finally!!” Horse-Face agreed with a nod.
“You two are in big trouble,” King Yama frowned. “You cannot do anything about death, it’s a normal thing that happens to everyone. Stop trying to cheat it.”
Rumble thought for a moment, scoffing. “Oh yeah? Well..-” He grabbed Savage and Macaque’s wrists, before dashing off. Savage grinned at the chaos, while Macaque softly yelped before following. They heard the three angry voices behind them, and Macaque grabbed the two. He summoned his own Nimbus Cloud, hopping on it and zooming off. However, the two heard Ox-Head, Horse-Face, and King Yama trailing close behind.
“How do we even get out of here, did you two have a game plan!?” Macaque asked, panicked.
Rumble and Savage thought for a moment, remembering Guan Yin's words.
“What words do we say?”
Guan Yin simply replied, “You’ll know when the time is right,” before vanishing before their very eyes.
Rumble and Savage looked at eachother, before yelling out in unison.
“IMMORTAL GODDESS GUAN YIN, PLEASE COME TO OUR AID!!!”
There was a bright flash of golden light, and a portal opened up. The Nimbus Cloud practically zoomed through, dissipating as they tumbled out of the portal and onto the floor.
Rumble cried out in pain, wincing and tensing as the force sent him flying into a tree. Savage didn’t have as many injuries, but they did end up crashing into Rumble after the portal had closed.
Macaque frowned, getting up and dusting himself off. He looked around, anxious and confused, before picking his children up and holding them close.
“...We’ll.. go tend to your wounds now, alright?” he asked the two, his top thoughts at the moment being to patch them up. “I’m so proud of you guys, you two never cease to amaze me. Just like your dad.” he sighed and frowned, before catching Rumble’s eye. Savage simply preened at all of the positive attention, however, Rumble’s expression held resentment at the mention of his papa. At Macaque’s questioning look, Rumble nodded quietly and Macaque felt dread pooling in his stomach as he came to the realization that Rumble saw his death.
“..Well, you know what I mean. C’mon, you two. We can’t live at Flower Fruit Mountain anymore, we’re gonna have to look for a new place to stay.”
“Oooh, I wanna live in a cave!” Savage exclaimed, grabbing onto Rumbles hands excitedly and shaking them. Rumble jolted for a moment before offering his sibling a tired smile, nodding to show that he was fine with it.
“Don’t tire him out anymore then he already is, alright kiddo?” Macaque suggested, Savage nodding and softly apologizing. “It’s okay. Hey, how about this. You two take a well-deserved nap, while I look for a place to stay for the night. With all the stuff that just happened, I wouldn’t be surprised if you two just have an adrenaline crash. We can get some food, get some shelter, and I'll make a game plan afterwards. That alright with you two?”
Rumble nodded, absolutely exhausted. He wasn’t sociable by any means, and he only took charge when necessary, so having to take care of his younger sibling for months on end and go to hell to save his dad? He felt just about ready to pass out from the exhaustion.
Savage was Rumble’s exact opposite in terms of sociability, however, after those long chain of events all they wanted to do was curl up next to his brother and take a nap. They nodded as well, chirping softly and tugging Rumble over to them.
Rumble and Savage both cuddled up to each other as Macaque cradled them in his arms, mumbling their good nights before easily passing out. Macaque looked at the two, kissing their foreheads affectionately before setting out to look for some food and a place to stay.
It would be difficult for the next few months, Macaque knew. He would have to work three times as hard as he did before to provide for Rumble and Savage. But oh well, he thought, he signed up for this the moment he accepted the kids into his life.
He looked down at the two again, taking in their features.
They shouldn’t have those wounds and bruises on their faces. The cuts and scrapes should’ve been there to show they were playful, carefree children, not to show their struggles at survival. Their scars should be funny memories to look back on, not traumatizing flashbacks that they can’t forget no matter how hard they try.
Sun Wukong betrayed and murdered him.
Sun Wukong ruined and traumatized his family, his children.
Sun Wukong was going to pay for what he did.
Macaque would make sure of it.